The Merseyside Ladies Cycling Association (MLCA) was formed in 1949 at a time when women were not permitted to race in the same races as men and as a result there were few opportunities for women to race. The initial aim of the MLCA was to both promote and support women's cycle racing in Merseyside, Cheshire and North Shropshire.

Now that there are so many more opportunities for women to race the MLCA no longer promotes its own races but still plays a part in supporting women's racing in the local area and presents a large number of awards for achievements in open events, both time trialling and road racing, and across all age groups. This ensures that women still have an element of club level competition with other local ladies despite the fact that many clubs still only have small numbers of ladies racing.